NEWS ALERT: Conservative/Alberta PC Operative Backs "Friends of Science"

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As Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Alberta Premier Ralph Klein continue to lead the anti-Kyoto charge on the political front, it now appears that that Tory activists are also working the public relations campaign to muddy the waters โ€“ especially by backing the activities of the Alberta-based climate change denial machine: โ€œFriends of Science.โ€

Morten Paulsen of the international PR and lobby firm, Fleishmann-Hillard, is listed as the media contact for the Friends of Science. Paulsen is a well-connected conservative. Among other things, he was long-time Alberta Director of Organization for the Reform Party until its name change to the Canadian Alliance in 2002 and Director of Communications for Preston Manning.

Paulson also held other positions throughout the PC and CPC parties:

  • 2006 โ€“ Co-Chair of the Alberta PCโ€™s AGM andย Convention
  • 2004 โ€“ Campaign Manager, for Calgary North East MP, Artย Hanger
  • 2002 – Spokesman for the Canadian Alliance party
  • 1996 โ€“ Executive Assistant to the Chief of Staff of the Leader of the Official Opposition, Prestonย Manning

Most recently, Friends of Science have financed and organized a speaking tour by the self-appointed climate expert Dr. Timothy Ball. It seems more than coincidental that a group of climate change skeptics, working with a Conservative Party insider, come together just as Harper and Klein begin the public spin battle to get out of Canadaโ€™s obligations under the Kyoto Accord. I

It is, in fact, another example of the degree to which the Tories have taken a page pulled from the 2003 Frank Luntz Republican playbook on dealing with the climate change issue.

Deny, deny, deny publicly and stall, stall, stallย politically.

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Kevin is a contributor and strategic adviser to DeSmog. He runs the digital marketing agency Spake Media House. Named a โ€œGreen Heroโ€ by Rolling Stone Magazine and one of the โ€œTop 50 Tweetersโ€ on climate change and environment issues, Kevin has appeared in major news media outlets around the world for his work on digital campaigning. Kevin has been involved in the public policy arena in both the United States and Canada for more than a decade. For five years he was the managing editor of DeSmogBlog.com. In this role, Kevinโ€™s research into the โ€œclimate denial industryโ€ and the right-wing think tank networks was featured in news media articles around the world. He is most well known for his ground-breaking research into David and Charles Kochโ€™s massive financial investments in the Republican and tea partyย networks. Kevin is the first person to be designated a โ€œCertified Expertโ€ on theย political and community organizing platformย NationBuilder. Prior to DeSmog, Kevin worked in various political and government roles. He was Senior Advisor to the Minister of State for Multiculturalism and a Special Assistant to the Minister of State for Asia Pacific, Foreign Affairs for the Government of Canada. Kevin also worked in various roles in the British Columbia provincial government in the Office of the Premier and the Ministry of Health. In 2008 Kevin co-founded a groundbreaking new online election tool called Vote for Environment which was later nominated for a World Summit Award in recognition of the worldโ€™s best e-Content and innovative ICTย applications. Kevin moved to Washington, DC in 2010 where he worked for two years as the Director of Online Strategy for Greenpeace USA and has since returned to his hometown of Vancouver, Canada.

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